'Elysium' To Be Given IMAX Release

Kind of strange to announce such a thing with just under a month before the film's release, but hey, better late than never.

Sony Pictures announced yesterday tha Neill Blomkamp's Elysium, starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster, will be given an IMAX release when it opens next month on August 9th.

The film will be given a full, digital re-master to meet the IMAX standards, however; the film will ONLY be available in IMAX, with no dreaded 3D add-on the kill the experience and moviegoer's wallets (honestly, does anyone actually like going to see a film in 3D now?  I'm almost annoyed I can't go see Guillermo del Toro's Pacific Rim in just IMAX like the director intended because the studio forced 3D down his throat).

Anyway, for anyone not familar with the plot of Elysium, the story takes place in 2159, and two classes of people are divided: the wealthy live on a man-made space station called Elysium, while the rest of the humans inhabit an overpopulated and ruined Earth.  Matt Damon plays a desperate man who must reach Elysium in order to find a cure that will save his life, while Jodie Foster plays the woman in-charge of securing Elysium from intruders.

Here's the official press release:

LOS ANGELES, July 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – IMAX Corporation, along with TriStar Pictures and Media Rights Capital today announced that Elysium, filmmaker Neill Blomkamp’s (District 9) futuristic action film starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster, will be digitally re-mastered into the immersive IMAX® format and released in IMAX® theatres worldwide beginning August 9.

“Neill Blomkamp is the kind of innovative, creative storyteller that moviegoers seek out, and we are thrilled to bring this highly anticipated film to IMAX audiences worldwide,” said Greg Foster, CEO of IMAX Entertainment and Senior Executive Vice President IMAX Corp.

“Elysium is one of the most highly anticipated films of the summer, so we’re pleased that audiences will have the chance to see Neill Blomkamp’s vision for the future in IMAX’s immersive format,” said Rory Bruer, president, Worldwide Distribution for Sony Pictures.

The IMAX release of Elysium will be digitally re-mastered into the image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience® with proprietary IMAX DMR® (Digital Re-mastering) technology.  The crystal-clear images, coupled with IMAX’s customized theatre geometry and powerful digital audio, create a unique environment that will make audiences feel as if they are in the movie.